ECHAR RAÍCES

Saint Teresa, founder of the Order of Discalced Carmelites Nuns, is a reference point. “I received this flower like a relic,” she wrote in her memoirs, recalling the flower her father gave her when she received the blessing to enter the convent. A flower she completely identified with, as she too was loved by God and called to put down roots in a different land to the family bud in order to produce fruit. Her autobiographical manuscripts explore the symbolism of the leafless rose: “I have no other way to show my love than to throw you flowers; in other words, to leave you a not insignificant sacrifice.”

Saint Teresa is generally depicted holding a crucifix and a bouquet of roses against her chest. For this work, the artist took just a fragment of this image, a hand holding a flower, which is a more contemporary depiction and linked to femininity.

THE AUTHORS

Raquel Rodrigo is characterised by her constant search to unite art and design, tradition and contemporaneity, craftsmanship and the industrial.

Arquicostura, which translates to “archi-sewing”, is a personal project that takes traditional cross-stitch to the streets, creating a second skin that is embedded into buildings, empty plots and even non-spaces. The pieces transmit a message to the spectator, inspiring them to make a personal connection to their own story, their home, family, mothers and grandmothers, all the told and untold stories. This work brings a feminine and invisible art into the light: the traditional and international art of cross-stitch embroidery.

Raquel travels all over the world exploring new cultures and sharing her technique, making her work a way of life.